Water professionals to discuss key issues

Abu Dhabi, March 26, 2012

Professionals from both the water and wastewater industries in the Middle East will discuss sustainable and cost efficient strategies at a conference in Abu Dhabi next month.

The O&M Water Middle East conference, being organised by BME Events, will take place on April 16 and 17.

With growth in the Middle East water sector continuing to increase exponentially, now is a crucial time for plant managers, asset owners and engineers in the sector to optimise the efficiency of their plants and expand their knowledge, said the organiser.

The region's largest markets are predicting growth to the value of several hundred billion dollars, with the Saudi government alone investing $56 billion dollars into in its water system over the next 15 years, over 70 per cent of which will be allocated to sewage and wastewater infrastructure.

The conference will provide a comprehensive coverage of all the issues affecting operations and maintenance in wastewater treatment and desalination plants under one roof and promote debate between asset owners and end users.

Kirsty Stevens, O&M Water Middle East developer, said: 'With so many resources being allocated to meet growing water needs in the GCC region there has never been a bigger call for O&M professionals working in the industry to ensure they are equipped to deal with this hugely increased demand.'

Among the speakers at the conference are: Abhay Arya of Sembcorp Water Power Company, the plant manager of the Fujairah 1 plant, who will deliver an in-depth case study on the optimisation and control of O&M costs for RO and MSF plants.

Arya's presentation will be complemented by Julio Torre Gutierrez of Nomac's comprehensive overview into establishing a private independent water O&M company in the Middle East, examining considerations for the operations of mega projects in remote areas and the implementation of integrated management systems and standardised procedures across multiple sites.

International participation from key stakeholders from Europe, Middle East and Asia, including Veolia Water, Sembcorp, Siemens, Doosan is expected. - TradeArabia News Service